Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-tf8b9 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-25T16:40:12.189Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Vero cytotoxin-producing Escherichia coli, particularly serogroup O157, associated with human infections in England and Wales: 1992–4

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 May 2009

A. Thomas ,
T. Cheasty ,
J. A. Frost ,
H. Chart ,
H. R. Smith  and
B. Rowe
A. Thomas
Affiliation:
Laboratory of Enteric Pathogens, Central Public Health Laboratory, 61 Colindale Avenue, London NW9 5HT
T. Cheasty
Affiliation:
Laboratory of Enteric Pathogens, Central Public Health Laboratory, 61 Colindale Avenue, London NW9 5HT
J. A. Frost
Affiliation:
Laboratory of Enteric Pathogens, Central Public Health Laboratory, 61 Colindale Avenue, London NW9 5HT
H. Chart
Affiliation:
Laboratory of Enteric Pathogens, Central Public Health Laboratory, 61 Colindale Avenue, London NW9 5HT
H. R. Smith*
Affiliation:
Laboratory of Enteric Pathogens, Central Public Health Laboratory, 61 Colindale Avenue, London NW9 5HT
B. Rowe
Affiliation:
Laboratory of Enteric Pathogens, Central Public Health Laboratory, 61 Colindale Avenue, London NW9 5HT
*
* Author for correspondence.
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Summary

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

Investigations were performed by the Laboratory of Enteric Pathogens on Vero cytotoxin-producing Escherichia coli (VTEC) in England and Wales from 1992–4. Bacterial isolates, faeces and sera obtained from patients with diarrhoea, bloody diarrhoea and haemolytic uraemic syndrome were examined. Using serotyping, Vero cytotoxin gene probing and serodiagnostic tests for E. coli O157, evidence of infection was detected in 543, 434 and 491 individuals in 1992, 1993 and 1994 respectively; VTEC of serogroup O157 were isolated from 470, 385 and 411 cases. The O157 VTEC strains belonged to at least 19 different phage types (PT) although 84% belonged to PT2, PT49, PT8, PT1 or PT4. Antibodies to E. coli O157 lipopolysaccharide were detected in 13% of the cases. The average annual rate of infection with O157 VTEC was 0·83/100000 and 12% of the 1458 individuals with evidence of infection with VTEC or E. coli O157 developed haemolytic uraemic syndrome. There were at least 18 general outbreaks and many family outbreaks.

Type
Research Article
Information
Epidemiology & Infection , Volume 117 , Issue 1 , August 1996 , pp. 1 - 10
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1996

References

1.Riley, LW, Remis, RS, Helgerson, SD, et al. Hemorrhagic colitis associated with a rare Escherichia coli serotype. N Engl J Med 1983; 308: 681–5.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
2.Karmali, MA. Infection by Verocytotoxin-producing Escherichia coli. Clin Microbiol Rev 1989; 2: 15–38.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
3.Kleanthous, H, Smith, HR, Scotland, SM, et al. Haemolytic uraemic syndromes in the British Isles, 1985–8: association with Verocytotoxin producing Escherichia coli. Part 2: microbiological aspects. Arch Dis Child 1990; 65: 722–7.Google Scholar
4.Thomas, A, Chart, H, Cheasty, T, Smith, HR, Frost, JA, Rowe, B. Vero cytotoxin-producing Escherichia coli, particularly serogroup O157, associated with human infections in the United Kingdom: 1989 to 1991. Epidemiol Infect 1993; 110: 591–600.Google Scholar
5.Karmali, MA, Steele, BT, Petric, M, Lim, C. Sporadic cases of haemolytic-uraemic syndrome associated with faecal cytotoxin and cytotoxin-producing Escherichia coli in stools. Lancet 1983; i: 619–20.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
6.Griffin, PM, Bell, BP, Cieslak, PR, et al. Large outbreak of Escherichia coli O157: H7 infections in the Western United States: the big picture. In: Karmali, MA, Goglio, AG, eds. Recent advances in Verocytotoxin-producing Escherichia coli infections. Amsterdam:Elsevier Science, 1994: 233–40.Google Scholar
7.Taylor, CM, White, RHR, Winterborn, MH, Rowe, B.Haemolytic-uraemic syndrome: clinical experience of an outbreak in the West Midlands. BMJ 1986; 292: 1513–6.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
8.Wall, PG, McDonnell, RJ, Adak, GK, Cheasty, T, Smith, HR, Rowe, B.General outbreaks of Vero cytotoxin producing Escherichia coli O157 in England and Wales from 1992 to 1994. Commun Dis Rep 1996; 6: R26–33.Google ScholarPubMed
9.Willshaw, GA, Thirlwell, J, Jones, AP, Parry, S, Salmon, RL, Hickey, M.Vero cytotoxin-producing Escherichia coli O157 in beefburgers linked to an outbreak of diarrhoea, haemorrhagic colitis and haemolytic uraemic syndrome in Britain. Lett Appl Microbiol 1994; 19: 304–7.Google Scholar
10.Willshaw, GA, Smith, HR, Scotland, SM, Field, AM, Rowe, B.Heterogeneity of Escherichia coli phages encoding Vero cytotoxins: comparison of cloned sequences determining VT1 and VT2 and development of specific gene probes. J Gen Microbiol 1987; 133: 1309–17.Google Scholar
11.Thomas, A, Smith, HR, Willshaw, GA, Rowe, B.Non-radioactively labelled polynucleotide and oligonucleotide DNA probes, for selectively detecting Escherichia coli strains producing Vero cytotoxins VT1, VT2 and VT2 variant. Molec Cell Probes 1991; 5: 129–35.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
12.Chart, H, Smith, HR, Scotland, SM, Rowe, B, Milford, DV, Taylor, CM. Serological identification of Escherichia coli O157:H7 infection in haemolytic uraemic syndrome. Lancet 1991; 337: 138–40.Google Scholar
13.Thomas, A, Jiggle, B, Smith, HR, Rowe, B.The detection of Vero cytotoxin-producing Escherichia coli and Shigella dysenteriae type 1 in faecal specimens using polymerase chain reaction gene amplification. Lett Appl Microbiol 1994; 19: 406–9.Google Scholar
14.Chapman, PA, Wright, DJ, Siddons, CA. A comparison of immunomagnetic separation and direct culture for the isolation of Vero cytotoxin-producing Escherichia coli O157 from bovine faeces. J Med Microbiol 1994; 40: 424–7.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
15.Willshaw, GA, Scotland, SM, Smith, HR, Cheasty, T, Thomas, A, Rowe, B. Hybridization of strains of Escherichia coli O157 with probes derived from the eaeA gene of enteropathogenic E. coli and the eaeA homolog from a Vero cytotoxin-producing strain of E. coli O157. J Clin Microbiol 1994; 32: 897–902.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
16.Gross, RJ, Rowe, B. Serotyping of Escherichia coli. In: Sussman, M, ed. The virulence of Escherichia coli: Reviews and methods. London: Academic Press, 1985: 345–63.Google Scholar
17.Ahmed, R, Bopp, C, Borczyk, A, Kasatiya, S.Phagetyping scheme for Escherichia coli O157:H7. J Infect Dis 1989; 155: 806–9.Google Scholar
18.Frost, JA. Testing for resistance to antimicrobial drugs. In: Chart, H, ed. Methods in practical laboratory bacteriology. Boca Raton; CRC Press, 1994: 73–82.Google Scholar
19.Thomas, A, Cheasty, T, Chart, H, Rowe, B. Isolation of Vero cytotoxin-producing Escherichia coli serotypes O9ab:H- and O101:H- carrying VT2 variant gene sequences from a patient with haemolytic uraemic syndrome. Eur J Microbiol Infect Dis 1994; 13: 1074–6.Google Scholar
20.Chart, H. Serodiagnosis of infections caused by Escherichia coli O157:H7 and other VTEC. Serodiagn Immunother Infect Dis 1993; 1: 8–12.Google Scholar
21. Anonymous. Escherichia coli O157 in Stockport. Commun Dis Rep 1992; 2, No. 4.Google Scholar
22.Allaby, MAK, Mayon-White, R.Escherichia coli O157: outbreak in a day nursery. Commun Dis Rep 1995; 5: R4–6.Google Scholar
23.Chapman, PA, Wright, DJ, Higgins, R. Untreated milk as a source of verotoxigenic E. coli O157. Vet Rec 1993; 133: 171–2.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
24.Hildebrand, JM, Maguire, HC, Holliman, RE, Kangesu, E. An outbreak of Escherichia coli O157 infection linked to paddling pools. Commun Dis Rep 1996; 6: R33–6.Google ScholarPubMed
25.Shukla, R, Slack, R, George, A, Cheasty, T, Rowe, B, Scutter, J. Escherichia coli O157 infection associated with a farm visitor centre. Commun Dis Rep 1995; 5: R86–90.Google Scholar
26.Griffin, PM, Tauxe, RV. The epidemiology of infections caused by Escherichia coli O157:H7, other enterohemorrhagic E. coli, and the associated hemolytic uremic syndrome. Epidemiol Rev 1991; 13: 60–98.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
27.Upton, P, Coia, JE. Outbreak of Escherichia coli O157 infection associated with pasteurised milk supply. Lancet 1994; 344: 1015.Google Scholar
28.Chapman, PA, Siddons, CA, Wright, DJ, Norman, P, Fox, J, Crick, E. Cattle as a possible source of Vero cytotoxin-producing Escherichia coli O157 infections in man. Epidemiol Infect 1993; 111: 439–47.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
29.Thomas, A, Smith, HR, Rowe, B.Use of digoxigenin-labelled oligonucleotide DNA probes for VT2 and VT2 human variant genes to differentiate Vero cytotoxin-producing Escherichia coli strains of serogroup O157. J Clin Microbiol 1993; 31: 1700–3.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
30.Barrett, TJ, Lior, H, Green, JH, et al. Laboratory investigation of a multistate food-borne outbreak of Escherichia coli O157:H7 by using pulsed-field gel electrophoresis and phage typing. J Clin Microbiol 1994; 32: 3013–7.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
31.Kim, HH, Samadpour, M, Grimm, L, et al. Characteristics of antibiotic-resistant Escherichia coli O157:H7 in Washington State, 1984–1991. J Infect Dis 1994; 170: 1606–9.Google Scholar
32.Waters, JR, Sharp, JCM, Dev, VJ. Infection caused by Escherichia coli O157:H7 in Alberta, Canada and in Scotland: a five-year review, 1987–1991. Clin Infect Dis 1994; 19: 834–43.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
33.Sharp, JCM, Reilly, WJ, Coia, JE, Curnow, J, Synge, BA. Escherichia coli O157 infection in Scotland: an epidemiological overview, 1984–94. PHLS Microbiol Dig 1995; 12: 134–40.Google Scholar
34.Advisory Committee on the Microbiological Safety of Food. Report on Verocytotoxin-producing Escherichia coli. London: HMSO, 1995.Google Scholar